Agency-listedUSFS · dispersedFree
Thornton Lake Camping Area
Drive-up · U.S. Forest Service · MI · 46.24566, -86.62044
Ask an AI about this campsiteOpens Grok already loaded with this site. It reads the same records this page is built from, and links whatever it tells you.
Ask about this camp →U.S. Forest Service lists this site. On most of their ground you can camp away from developed sites pretty much anywhere — so treat this as a known-good spot, not the only one allowed. The unit sets stay limits and how far off road and water you must be. What changes is conditions — roads, gates, closures, fire rules. Check those with the unit before you commit to the drive.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook — at Thornton Lake Camping Area
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 826 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Thornton Lake Camping AreaNIFC · AirNow
Checking active fires & air quality…
Active wildfires from NIFC (within ~50 mi); air quality from AirNow. Always confirm current fire restrictions with the managing office before you go.
Everything you need — measured from Thornton Lake Camping Area · Hiawatha National Forest · MI
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- FFuel1 mi
- GGrocery1 mi
- ShShower8 mi
- @Mail9 mi
- MMechanic10 mi
- EVEV fast charger11 mi
- WWater12 mi
- +Urgent care12 mi
- DDump14 mi
- LLaundry26 mi
- HHardware27 mi
- RxPharmacy27 mi
- OOutfitter40 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water's a short hop out, fuel & food sit about 1 mi out.
Not within 60 mi: Propane. Plan those before you head up.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — Thornton Lake Camping Area
Access
Drive-up
Land
U.S. Forest Service · dispersed
Elevation
826 ft
State
MI
Coordinates
46.24566, -86.62044
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Thornton Lake Camping Area · Hiawatha National Forest · MI (OpenStreetMap)
- Water featureThornton Lake (water) · nearby
- Nearest townKentucky · ~1.4 mi
- Drinking waternone within 10 mi
- FuelFuel · ~1.4 mi
- Propane / LPGnone within 31 mi
- Dump station~14.1 mi
- GroceriesForest Glen General Store · ~1.4 mi
- Hospital / clinicMunsing Memorial Hospital · ~12.4 mi
- HardwareAce Hardware · ~26.6 mi
EV charging — from Thornton Lake Camping Area · Hiawatha National Forest · MI — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast charger11.4 mi straight-line N — Munising City Hall · FLO · CHAdeMO, CCS · 2 fast ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily · directions
- Public DC fast stations within reach1 within 25 mi · 11 within 50 · 30 within 100 · 95 within 150
- Nearest listing NACS (Tesla)33.0 mi — Andys Seney Bar, Seney
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)38.8 mi — NCP BACK LOT NORTH COAST PL, Marquette, MI · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Pricing at the fast chargernot listed
- Power (kW)not listed by AFDC — “DC fast” spans roughly 24 to 350 kW, so ask the network.
- Read this honestlyStraight-line miles, like every distance on this site. Roads run longer than this, and you have to get back. We know where a charger is listed. We don’t know if it works today, how fast it is, or the road miles. Check the network before you commit.
Snapshot 2026-09-16 · AFDC record 356048 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Thornton Lake Camping Area · Hiawatha National Forest · MI — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- RestroomMF Munising Falls Comfort Station · ~12.3 mi N · NPS
- RestroomCR Learning Shelter Vault Toilet · ~13.1 mi N · NPS
- Vault / pit toiletCamp Seven Lake Recreation Area · ~13.3 mi S · USFS
- RestroomSP Sand Point Beach Vault Toilet · ~14.1 mi N · NPS
Open Thornton Lake Camping Area elsewhere
Other camps near Thornton Lake Camping Area
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Petes Lake Recreation Area~1.3 mi · fee
- Council Lake Camping Area~1.3 mi · fee
- Indian River Fish Lake Island Camping Area~1.7 mi
- Hike Lake Camping Area~1.8 mi
The unit that manages Thornton Lake Camping Area
Stay limits, road closures and fire restrictions at Thornton Lake Camping Area are set by Hiawatha National Forest, not by the campsite — check there before you go.
How we know this — Thornton Lake Camping Area
Source
U.S. Forest Service recreation data
Confidence
Likely — The record is good enough to put a pin on, but thin in places. Treat the details as a starting point, not gospel.
How it was placed
USFS/BLM authoritative: free & dispersed. Access not field-checked (assumed drive-up).
EV chargers
US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center station locator, snapshot 2026-09-16. Straight-line miles to the nearest public, open, unrestricted station; restricted and planned units are shown but never counted.
Field check
On the agency's books. The land manager inventoried this site, so its existence is not in question — current conditions are. Nobody from here has camped it recently.
What we don’t know about Thornton Lake Camping Area
A land record can put you within a few meters of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Seasonal & winter access
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up
- Whether a listed EV charger works today, or the road miles to it
Before you go — Thornton Lake Camping Area
Camping near a reservoir →Finding water out here →What “dispersed” means here →Picking a spot →All field notes →
Been here? Tell us what changed. This page is built from public records, so the fastest way it gets better is somebody who has actually pulled in. Road washed out, site gone, gate locked, or it is exactly as described — all of it useful. Send a report →